Freight Glossary
Bill of Lading
A bill of lading (BOL) is a legally binding document issued by a carrier to a shipper that serves three functions: a receipt for the freight, a contract of carriage, and a document of title. It travels with the shipment and is required for every freight move. Key fields include shipper and consignee addresses, piece count, weight, commodity description, and any special handling instructions.
Why it matters
The BOL is the foundational document for freight accountability. Errors or omissions on a BOL can delay shipments, complicate claims, trigger reclassification fees, and create billing disputes that take weeks to resolve. An incorrect weight on a BOL can trigger a carrier reweigh fee of $25 to $75 plus rate adjustments that inflate the final invoice.
When to use it
A BOL is required on every freight shipment. Prepare it before the carrier arrives for pickup and ensure all fields, including weight, dimensions, freight class, origin, and destination, are accurate. Train warehouse staff to verify piece counts against the BOL before the driver departs, as discrepancies found later are much harder to resolve.
How Warp thinks about it
Warp provides a BOL template tool to help shippers generate accurate shipping documents. Every Warp move is backed by a complete BOL for compliance and accountability. Our AI backbone, Orbit, validates BOL data at booking to flag missing fields before the shipment is dispatched.